I spent an hour long therapy appointment talking about the concerns my therapist and I share regarding the politics of our country and where they are headed. While the conversation dwelt on a lot of depressing topics, it was overall reassuring to connect with another person who sees red flags and backward progress.  Though it’s not really progress when it’s backward, is it?  Regression. Yeah, I’ll go with that. A person who sees red flags and regression.

It’s not that a lot of progress hasn’t been made overall. When you look at the kind of open, unapologetic, aggressive racism of the Jim Crow era and realize that it wasn’t very long ago, it’s impossible to deny how much things have changed. It’s that I want things to get better and better and it’s hard to see things slipping back on any civil rights front.

Civil rights are for everyone, even the people you disagree with.

Anyway, moving on to today’s Don’t Bleed related blurb:

The spell seems like a paradox. It feeds the very thing it relies on, getting stronger and stronger as it goes round. I need to break that circle, but I don’t see the way in.

I edited Chapter 3, and I think chances are good that I’m going to turn it into Chapters 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, because otherwise it’s a long and rather bleak chapter. It’ll still be bleak, but five bleak short sections feel easier to get through than one bleak long one.

Naturally, Ianta followed from where she was making a nuisance of herself while I edited my novel printout to where she can make a nuisance of herself while I write this post. I love her anyway.

Another short one for Don’t Bleed:

So the big question is: how do I get out of here without arousing suspicion that I’m just retreating to formulate a better plan?

Just finished editing Chapters 1 and 2 (from Part Two) of my novel. Really wanted to edit Chapter 3 but it’s long and I need to go to bed early. I’m so over being sleep deprived.

Continuing the super short Don’t Bleed (yeah, yeah, I’m a Whovian) blurbs:

He looks right at me, “Don’t make me kill you.”

There are too many knives in this room. All it would take is one well-aimed stab and all the life ebbing from me would make him stronger. My disadvantage is clear. I can’t kill him with knives and his magic is in a different class than mine.

No novel editing today but I do have all my work dinners and lunches made, along with breakfasts for several days. I also caught up on my finances. I feel pretty pleased with what I’ve accomplished today and I’m in a good mood from my favorite episode of the current season of Doctor Who so far.

This is going to be another tiny blurb for that same potential short story. I really need to come up with a working title. I’m such a Whovian that “Don’t Bleed” is what’s coming to mind.

He shakes his head. “It’s not that simple. I can’t break the spell. It’s tied to my life.”

I suppose that does make sense. It doesn’t change what I have to do.

I’m continuing to make progress on my novel. Chapters 11, 12, and 13 edited tonight. Chapter 14’s a lengthy and pivotal one so I’m saving that for tomorrow. Now for this blog post, then to walk the dog.

Once more, continuing from yesterday:

“It can’t!” she snaps. “That’s the whole problem!”

“I can fix that. I can fix his body.”

“How?”

“I’ll show you.”

She shakes her head but doesn’t walk away.

“What more could you possibly have to lose than the alternative?”

All the fight drains from her body. She sags, clutching her dying son close. “All right.”

Chapters 7, 8, 9, and 10 of my novel edited! They’re all short chapters but it makes me feel accomplished to have gotten through four on a worknight anyway. Maybe that’s why I made some short chapters in the first place. Hmm.

The downside is that, at least on workdays, I have time to work on my novel or this new short story of mine, but not both. I really need someone to adult for me so I can spend most of my time storying.

Continuing directly from yesterday’s snippet:

“I don’t have the money for a transfusion or stitches,” she says this without looking at me but she does stop walking.

“I don’t want your money and I can’t give blood or sew anyone up.”

“Then how can you possi-“

“What if he didn’t need those things? What if his body could heal on its own?”

I just edited Chapters 5 and 6 of my novel and they made me happy, something I need to enjoy while it lasts because damn does this thing have its depressing stretches.

I also meal prepped my lunches for the week, which I didn’t have time to do yesterday after I got back from Fresno.

My mind is far from this potential short story of mine, but let’s see…

She’s about to hurry off, shielding her boy from me like I might snatch him away so I say the desperate thing because I need to know if I can end this, “I can save your son.”

Back home and somehow still feeling super full from a dinner that didn’t seem that large when I was cooking it.

I’m still leaning toward telling the story from the point of view of the person who approaches the mom. That may have something to do with not wanting to write kid dialogue (I’m not good at that.)

Another short one tonight since it’s been a busy weekend and I still have things to do before bed:

“Just because no one can explain it yet doesn’t mean it’s magic.”

“True, but we have an advantage: we know magic is real.”

“I could literally just repeat the last thing I said.”

It’s another snippet from the same story.